Menu on the Wall

Image from the BBC.

The Israeli-made West Bank wall passes right through Charlie Butto's restaurant, Bahamas, in the West Bank, which makes for a horrible sight, as written by the BBC. Butto, making the most of the circumstance, decided to use the wall as an attraction: He placed his menu on the wall, allowing customers to order off the wall.

IDF on Facebook

At first, when I glanced at the spattering of links in my Google alerts (seriously, what did I do before them?) and saw the word "Facebook," I just assumed it had to do with renaming Israeli neighborhoods in the West Bank as part of Palestine. But, I was wrong.

Like any other member of Facebook, IDF soliders, both former and current, post pictures online. In their case, however, they're exposing the Israeli Army because of information leaks: interiors of army bases, weapons, locations, etc. The Jerusalem Post took it upon themselves to investigate this and, as a courtesy to the IDF, printed only a few of those Facebook pictures along the article.

Several Israeli Defense departments sent out notices to all IDF soliders, telling them to take out any classified information from their profiles. They worry that, since Facebook is basically open to anyone, that those within the Israel network will use that information to their advantage. IDF soliders that exposed extremely classified information were sent to jail for a month.

Yes, it's true you have to be careful with these materials, but I think this is a bit out there. It reminds me of New York City's apparent policy about recording or taking pictures of bridges or transportation.

From Dhaka to Calcutta, We Go

The Moitree, or Maitreyi, Express in Dhaka, Bangladesh. Photo by Subir Bhaimuk from the BBC.

Today marks the first official run of the Moitree Express (Friendship Express) from Dhaka, Bangladesh to Calcutta, India. This train used to run back when Bangladesh was still Pakistan, but it was shut down during the 1965 war between India and Pakistan (which eventually led to the 1971 Bangladesh Liberation War from Pakistan). Fittingly, today is also Bengali New Year's.

My dad said it was a shame we weren't in Bangladesh now so that we might've taken the train. The cheapest tickets are around $8 U.S., which probably means that first class tickets would be around $20 U.S. Looking at the BBC's pictures, it seems like the interior of the train resembles the train we took from Chittagong to Dhaka--the fans on the ceilings, the seats, the doors. Though, our train wasn't decorated with flowers.

My dad recalled his father's stories about taking the bus from Dhaka to Calcutta to his first job when Bangladesh was still part of India. His father, my grandfather, was part of three countries: India, Pakistan and Bangladesh; my mother and father were part of the latter two.

I hope, the next time I'm in Bangladesh, I get to take this train.

A Look at Israel

At first, when I read the headline "Israel's Secret Success," in the New York Times, I thought the op-ed would be a typical New York Sun article: calling for more attention to Israel's horrible plight while ignoring Palestine's problems, and condemning anyone who opposes Israel's views and positions.

But I was mistaken.

The author, Daniel Gavron, an Israeli who had his bar mitzah the same year Israel was created, considers himself a Zionist. Yet, he is able to rationally point out Israel's flaws.

Peter Hirschberg of Israel's Haaretz wrote about Gavron. Back in 2003, Gavron was a big proponent of a one-nation state, as opposed to the popular two-nation state idea. Under the one-nation state, Israelis and Palestinians would live in the same country under one government. One of the major reasons as to why the two-nation state isn't viable is, to him, because of Israeli settlers. He said:

"Many Israelis, and other Jews, will argue that historic justice demands a Jewish state...there should be one place on Earth where the Jews can exercise their natural right to sovereignty. They are absolutely right, but, unfortunately, given the choice between sovereignty and land, we chose land. We have manifestly preferred settlement in the whole Land of Israel to a state of Israel in part of the land. It is irrelevant that the settlers are a small minority. The rest of us have permitted them to do what they wanted."

In Gavron's op-ed yesterday, he calls Israel out on what they've done wrong--something that, it seems, every newspaper has been afraid to do, or at least, publish. He talks about how unfair the Israeli occupation of Palestinian territories are. He denounces Israel's restrictions of Gaza's electricity.

He also understands that Israel is, indeed, powerful and this get to their heads in the form of paranoia. After the recent suicide attack, Israel now wants to build a fence along its Egyptian border. (The reason being because of Palestinian terrorists, not Egyptian terrorists, so why is the fence along Egypt?) Instead, why don't they try to work it out some other way, showcase some diplomacy and be the bigger person in the situation (or the bigger country)?

Granted, Hamas, the elected Palestinian government, is considered a terrorist group and their actions do support that, and there are Palestinians and other Muslims that deny Israel's existence. But I'm sure there are those who view Israel in the same, violent light (Testing rockets? Right.) and those who want to eject Muslims from areas completely. But no one focuses on that.

And, trust me, I don't consider myself anti-Israel. (Though, I do agree that American funding should be cut back significantly, something Josh brought up earlier last night, but I'll get to that at a later time.) I believe there should be two states, though, to what borders the states should adhere to, I have no idea yet. And, hey, this is only what I know so far, I don't claim to be overly informed about these matters just yet. I've got more to learn about.


(P.S. The fact that Gavron decided to walk across Israel a la Robert Byron and Rory Stewart, though their's were in Afghanistan, and wrote about it makes him even cooler in my book.)

Islam in Turkey

Reading this BBC article about Turks protesting a proposed constitutional amendment allowing women to wear head scarves in universities. The country, where 99% of the population is Muslim (according to wikipedia), is still considered a secular, parliamentary republic. During the elections in July, 2007, the Justice and Development Party won, despite being accused of holding secret Islamic agendas. To me, it's obvious that people should be allowed to wear what they want, especially when it adheres to religious rules. This reminds me of the French ban of religious attire, but their's included Sikh turbans, Jewish kippahs and Christian crosses.

The non-Muslim Turks are so suspicious of anything remotely Islamic--they protested the campaigns of President Abdullah Gul because of his religion and the fact that his wife wears a hijab.

Really, the governments are just letting down the students, if it is part of your religion to dress a certain way, and it's not in a risque manner or anything, then why shouldn't they be allowed to? By banning religious clothing, the students are left with no choice but to further their education somewhere else.

And what does that say about Turkey if the government isn't allowed to accommodate different religions?

Bits: Viagra for Votes, Majestic Pink, Border Games, Indo-Bengali Relations and AP 2.0

1.

"Thailand fights vote buying with black magic, jail" by Nopporn Wong-Anan, from Reuters

In efforts to get rid of corruption in the face of the upcoming election, Reuters gives examples of how candidates buy votes, as Sayan Nopkham describes:

"He [unnamed candidate] hands out one or two Viagra pills to middle-aged men when he is campaigning. Another trick is to hand out bags of rice."

2.

"Thai King sparks pink shirt craze" from BBC

When Thai King Bhumibol Adulyadej came home from the hospital wearing a pale pink blazer with matching shirt, he jumpstarted Thailand's latest pink obsession so much so that

"Civil servant Rose Tarin, 56, recently camped outside a clothing store from 4 a.m. to ensure she was able to buy one of the latest shipments of pink shirts."

3.

"Ritual Combat at the India Pakistan Border" by John Soltes, from Time

After all the wars (1947 Partition War, bloody disputes over Kashmir that still continue), India and Pakistan play nice with this nightly event across the highly-guarded border, complete with lowered flags, elaborate soldierly gestures and to end exchange, a friendly handshake.

4.

"India says lifts ban on rice export to cyclone-hit Bangladesh" from AFP

It's interesting that India would have a ban on rice with Bangladesh in the first place, considering their proximity and the fact that India backed Bangladesh during its 1971 Independence War. The article attributes this to illegal immigration from Bangladesh to India across the border. That's why India's trying to build a fence along that border. It also shows the difference between Indo-Bengali and Indo-Pakistani relations.

5.

"A.P. to Reorganize Work and Accent Multimedia" by Cate Doty, from the New York Times

Another news service refigures for the new media era.

Bits: Marrying Your Loyal Best Friend and The Cost of an Island,

1.

"Man 'marries' dog to beat curse" from the BBC

So, what this article's about is that this Hindi Indian man, P Selvakumar, thought he was cursed because he killed two dogs because of health problems. In order to remove the curse, he believed there was only one cure: marry a dog (female, of course). The wedding took place in a Hindi temple and was celebrated by the people of the Sivaganga district. The article notes that the bridge wore an orange sari and a flower garland.

And this article demonstrates the perfect way to end an article with a quote (said by a relative of Selvakumar):

"On the advice of an astrologer and others, he decided to marry a bitch to get cured. Then we arranged Selvakumar's marriage with a bitch."

2.

"City Claims Final Private Island in East River" by Timothy Williams, from the New York Times

In a city made up of islands, the New York City government buys South Brother Island, located near the mouth of the Long Island Sound and near Rikers Island.

The island, home to untouched wildlife, was last sold for $10 in 1975. The city, thankfully, won't develop as they have a tendency to do, and will keep the island as a nature santuary.

Bits: The Global Candidate, Separate Muslim Territories and No Touching!

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Bits: MTA Fare Hike, Kayaking to New Zealand, Night-time Appalachian Trail and old-school NY Mag.

1.

"Don't Rush to a Fare Hike," Editorial by the New York Times

All this talk about yet again another fare hike makes me think back on the holiday discount program where discounted rides were given over the holiday weekends and extended 30-Metrocards by ten days from Thanksgiving to New Year's. If the MTA was so hard-pressed for money, why in the world did they do that?

2.

"Kayakers begin Tasman Sea attempt" by Phil Mercer, from the BBC

So these guys, Justin Jones and James Castrission, are kayaking (in a custom-built kayak) from Sydney, Australia to Auckland, New Zealand. They're setting off now and hope to reach New Zealand by Christmas.

The article makes no mentions of where they plan to stop, though they expect to paddle for 14 hours a day.

Jones said,

"First and foremost [the trip] is for the pure adventure of it all. I mean, everybody, inside anyone has got a little bit of adventure in them and we've just got to go out and follow that. It would be a crime not to."

He might be my new boyfriend now. Oh, adventures...

3.

"What's Lurking in the Dark?" by David A. Fahrenthold, from the Washington Post

Over the summer, Hannah and I stayed up late, enjoying ourselves and talking about things we wanted to do.

"Let's go hiking!" Hannah said. "Let's walk the Appalachian Trail!"

After looking at pictures on her laptop, we sent Rob an email about it. We never did it, though, due to scheduling. But this article reminds me about it.

So they set up cameras along the trail in Virginia to check out night-time critters (which I now know includes deer, thank you, Josh). The Appalachian is home to those deer, bears, bobcats and a flying squirrel.

Volunteer Trish Bartholomew said of bears backing into the cameras:

"I don't know of anything else that's that black and furry."

4.

"Mailer-Breslin Seriously?" [May 5, 1969] from New York Magazine

Check out the old-school layout (in pdf form).

Bits: The Gay Bomb

"'Gay Bomb' scoops Ig Noble award," from the BBC

The concept behind the Ig Nobel awards is that they are given to breakthroughs in research and the such that are, as the article quotes, "first make people laugh, and then make them think."

One particular award stood out, to me as well as to the BCC, hence the headline:

For Peace: The U.S. Air Force Wright Laboratory for instigating research and development on a chemical weapon that would provoke widespread homosexual behavior among enemy troops.

Earlier in the article, the BBC noted,

Unfortunately, said the organizers, nobody from the U.S. military who carried out the research on chemicals that could prompt homosexual dalliances amongst rival troops (a research project called Harassing, Annoying and "Bad Guy" Identifying Chemicals) attended the ceremony because the study's authors could not be tracked down.

This is what Rob had to say to that: "They were in a bar in Provincetown, recovering from their 'wounds.'"

Bangladesh By River & My Life

By way of a Google alert I had for Bangladesh, I found this announcement on BBC. Journalists from the BBC will travel on the MV Aboshor around Bangladesh by its many rivers in order to observe how climate affects the banks and in turn, the people. Bangladesh relies on its rivers, but at the same time, the drastic weather changes wreck complete havoc on the country, as seen during the past summer.

Reading through the various journalists' articles (on a sort-of difficult website to navigate) and a comment Rob made earlier, I've come to realize what kind of career path I ideally want to tread on—traveling around and writing about the things I'm interested in, like boating along Bengali rivers, press rights in Burma or waterfront access in New York. This is something I need to get started on soon.

Updates: Burma & Bronx Science

Burma:
- Roger Cohen discusses China's involvement and lackthereof with Burma in light of the Beijing Olympics in next year.
- Released monks recount their degrading captivity, including being told that they weren't monks anymore, made to eat barely-there food with their hands and, of course, beaten.
- Another known death, a pro-democracy activist in captivity as well.

Bronx Science:
- The ever-lovable New York Sun takes a look at Principal Valerie "Dr. Quack" Reidy, the changes she made at Science (more tests, enforcing the discovery method which entails learning in the classroom instead of reading materials ahead of time) and responses. The Sun includes positive reviews of Reidy too.

& More Burma News

First, here's a nice look at Burma's reluctant need for a military regime by Seth Mydans, and another look at Burmese protestors by Thomas Fuller.

While the streets are relatively calm during the day, apparently at night, the junta go on raids through monastaries and homes, searching for and arresting any dissenters, including monks. And still, officially, there are only ten people killed during the protest. This number is an obvious fiction.

Prompted by the UN envoy Ibrahim Gambari's visit, the junta now picked out an official to deal with talks with the pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Syi. This is a big step as the junta previously refused to deal with Suu Syi. Whether the junta will listen is another question to be answered.

Ye Min Tun, the Burmese diplomat in London, resigned over regime's clampdown and violence, citing, "This revolution, this incident seemed to be the decisive factor that could persuade the government to go to the negotiation table. But actually the government ignored the reality," according to BBC.

While I agree with his horror and his decision to not associate himself with the military, I hope he plans on pushing for democracy in Burma. It's better to fight than to give up, that's what the monks are doing, and the Burmese civilians should follow their lead.

& here's a nice image from my fellow Rail designer, Graham.

Burma, A Week After

After the beatings and killings are over (that we know of and could see) in Burma, its streets are calm and back to what seems like normal. It's like nothing happened last week, the monks and civilians weren't protesting, the junta didn't attack the demonstrators, the monks weren't sealed in their temples, people weren't shot at or hacked at. None of that happened.

But of course, emotions still run high throughout the country. While the junta has a history of attacking its citizens, they never had the gall to attack the monks. That is where the Burmese's anger lies. The highly spiritual and Buddhist country, the monks, as I keep saying, are highly revered. Once the monks rejected the junta by refusing to accept their food dontations, the junta lost what little bit of good face they had in the country. Even by releasing 229 monks and nuns they detained, the junta will never have the same power over the country as it used to. They touched the untouchables and the Burmese won't forgive them for that.

By sending U.N. envoy Ibrahim Gambari, the U.N. and the world tried to send a message to the Myanmar junta: We think what you're doing is wrong and we are trying to do something about it. But messages aren't enough.

The U.N. Security Council's attempts to intervene somehow fell through thanks to China's block, so it was all on Gambari to save the UN's face. But did it work? Highly doubtful--if the junta didn't succomb to international pressure years before, what makes this time any different?

And again, the junta cut off the internet. Don't they understand it's too late? The world knows and sees what's going on. Even Slyvestor Stallone saw what was happening. The Democratic Voice of Burma and the Irrawady update constantly, along with bloggers and other news sources. The junta's reputation isn't on the line anymore. But goddamnit, why aren't we doing something about it?

China and the ASEAN need to stand up against Burma. The Indonesian Foreign Minister, Hassan Wirajuda, suggested a shared government, junta with civilian, in order to ease into a democracy smoothly. Wirajuda also insisted on China's involvement. Forget about the oil in Burma--there are lives at stake, isn't that more important? They need to tell the junta to back down. They need to force the junta to stop and actually talk to the leaders and fix the country. Give the people what they want and get rid of the military regime in whatever way possible and let Myanmar become Burma again.

Burma Turning On Itself

As I said before, Burma is a Buddhist country. Therefore, monks are highly revered. When the monks joined the protests, the world probably believed they were untouchable. Sure, they were sealed inside temples and taken away to prisons and schools and buses that served imprisonment purposes, but to hurt and kill the monks? That's sacreligious. That's just goddamn wrong. Looking at Ho Htike's latest entry, monks are being murdered by their own soldiers and government that, according to satellite images, wiped out entire villages. There are also more personal accounts on BBC's website.

The very soldiers led by the very government that should, ideally, be protecting them. But instead, this is happening.

And what is anyone doing? The UN envoy, Ibrahim Gambari, met with the junta with the detained pro-democracy leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, but of course nothing will come of it. Come on, the junta's been around for a while and no one did anything about it before. They know they don't have to listen to the UN. And all the while, the only thing China, Russia and India care about is their economical ties with Burma, so of course they won't impose sanctions against Burma, yet they are the countries with strong influences on the country.

And I call bullshit on reports that at least nine people died today. Bullshit. It is obvious that many, many more than that died already. Many more. But it's difficult getting the right facts as journalists are continuously being arrested, which, at a crucial time like this, is a sad, sad thing.

Chaos in Burma

After the 8888 Uprising (called so for the date: August 8, 1988) in Burma, where students and monks peacefully protested against General Ne Win's dictatorship, they were greeted by force and bullets. Then the military regime State Peace and Development Council took over and renamed the country Myanmar and its largest city Yangon (formerly Rangoon). The junta claimed that only eleven people died, whereas the Burmese said that thousands did.

And now, in this country nestled between South and Southeast Asia, one year short of a two decades later, history is repeating itself.

Because of fuel price increases in August 2007, Burmese people took to the streets and protested against the military junta. After several arrests and one instance of military intervention on September 15, the protesters were soon joined by the monks, who even took government officials hostage for several hours in protest of the increases. This was seen as a big step because they are held in high regard in Burma, a mostly-Buddhist nation. Soon, the intentions behind the protests evolved into a desire to overthrow the military junta, headed by Senior General Than Schwe, through, of course, peaceful rallies throughout Burma. One march led them to the home of Aung San Suu Kyi, a pro-democracy leader who rose during the 8888 Uprising, who was put under house arrest on and off since then.

Because of presence of the monks, the junta attempted to placidly negotiate an end to the protests. Then, on Wednesday, they had enough and chaos unleashed throughout Burma. The junta raided Buddhist temples so to fish out any suspecting monks, shooting tear gas over the streets and sidewalks, sealing monks in temples and shooting into crowds. Officially so far, 9 people have been killed, including a Japanese photographer (see video provided by Reuters). But that's only officially.

With such a tight hand on the country, the junta rarely allows foreign journalists into the country. Because of these events, this is even more so now. Despite cell phone signal internet blockages and cut-down telephone lines, the Burmese and foreigners in the country are doing their best to let the world know and see what is truly happening.

Among those include Ho Htike. London-based, Hitke receives cell phone pictures and videos and any other information from various people throughout the country, acknowledging the great risks they are taking. Then he updates his blog, letting everyone see the bullet shots, cuts, bruises and blood on the streets.

Coincidentally enough, I recently finished reading Richard Lloyd Parry's In the Time of Madness: Indonesia on the Edge of Chao, where he experienced the tumultuous and violent end beginning of Indonesia. The fall of and fights for independence from then-General and President Suharto and the Indonesian government and military sound quite familiar today and I remembered the book as I checked the news constantly.

In the late 1990s, Parry witnessed the protests and rallies, the power and force of the Indonesian police and how organized yet chaotic they enforced their ways onto the people of Indonesia by frightening those who opposed them, and if that failed, then killing them. This was done all in the name of holding power over Indonesia, whether they liked it or not.

And before Suharto took over, there was his predecessor, Sukarno, who himself took over Indonesia very slyly in the 1960s. Because of the need to industrialize and get Indonesia on the same page as those other world powers, any means were taken, even if that meant ignoring and abusing Indonesia's very people.

After the Indonesian riots, Suharto resigned in 1998, leaving the country to slowly fix itself and implement a national government.

As of now, Burma is still in turmoil and the protesters refuse to give up. Following the excellent and constantly updated coverage from the New York Time's Seth Mydans, their Southeast Asia correspondent, it is difficult to determine what exactly will happen. Will the violence continue until the junta gives up? Or will it continue until one side is defeated? Either way, there will be disastrous results, but hopefully, hopefully, the junta will be toppled and Burma will not suffer as severely as Indonesia did. But then, we don't know what really is going on there.

Video of protestors
provided by Reuters (only the first portion concerns Burma)

[It's interesting to note that the New York Times, Washington Post and BBC (my main news sources) refer to the country as Myanmar while the Associated Press uses Burma.]